Secure Merchandising Display With Blocker Mechanisms

ABSTRACT

A system for controlling advancement of and access to product housed within a device. Systems and devices include a pushing assembly having a track, a pusher, and a stop for restricting forward movement of the pusher when the stop is engaged. The device also includes a door assembly that has an open position and a closed position, an engaging mechanism that engages the stop when the door assembly is in the open position, and a blocker mechanism that restricts consumer access to product located behind the door assembly.

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/111,235 filed May 19, 2011 (Allowed), which claims the benefit ofU.S. Provisional Application No. 61/346,211 filed May 19, 2010, theentire contents of all of which are hereby incorporated by reference.U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/111,235 is a continuation-in-partapplication of U.S. Ser. No. 12/792,252 filed Jun. 2, 2010 (U.S. Pat.No. 8,353,425), which is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. Ser.No. 12/567,370 filed Sep. 25, 2009 (U.S. Pat. No. 8,190,289), the entirecontents of all of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments generally relate to systems for advancing and controllingaccess to product on a shelf.

BACKGROUND

Theft of small items in retail stores is a common problem. Items thatare in high demand by thieves include over-the-counter (OTC) productssuch as analgesics and cough and cold medications, razor blades, camerafilm, batteries, videos, DVDs, smoking cessation products and infantformula. Shelf sweeping is a particular problem for small items. Shelfsweeping occurs when individuals or groups remove all the shelf stockand exit the store, similar to a “smash and grab” shoplifting technique.Shelf sweeping relies on excessive quantities of product being availableon the shelf. Retailers must keep substantial inventory on shelf orincur the cost, including labor costs, of constantly restocking.

In addition to preventing theft, retail stores may want to limit thepurchase of certain items. For example, to make methamphetamine, largequantities of cold medication are needed. Pseudoephedrine, the soleactive ingredient in many cold medicines and decongestants, is also akey ingredient in methamphetamine, a powerful and highly addictivestimulant.

Retailers are challenged to balance the needs of legitimate consumers'access to high theft items with measures to minimize the incidence oftheft. Because theft has become so rampant in certain productcategories, such as razors and infant formula, many retail stores aretaking the products off the shelves and placing them behind the counteror under lock and key. Customers must request the products to make apurchase. This requires additional labor costs to provide individualservice to customers who would normally not require it. It also makes itdifficult for customers to compare products. Furthermore, it might notbe feasible where the space behind the counter is limited and is neededfor prescription medications. In some cases, products are simplyunavailable due to high pilferage rates. Therefore, a device ordispensing apparatus that minimizes the incidence of product theft isneeded.

SUMMARY

The terms “invention,” “the invention,” “this invention” and “thepresent invention” used in this patent are intended to refer broadly toall of the subject matter of this patent and the patent claims below.Statements containing these terms should not be understood to limit thesubject matter described herein or to limit the meaning or scope of thepatent claims below. Embodiments of the invention covered by this patentare defined by the claims below, not this summary. This summary is ahigh-level overview of various aspects of the invention and introducessome of the concepts that are further described in the DetailedDescription section below. This summary is not intended to identify keyor essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intendedto be used in isolation to determine the scope of the claimed subjectmatter. The subject matter should be understood by reference to theentire specification of this patent, all drawings and each claim.

Systems of this invention relate to controlled access devices that houseproduct and that have a door assembly having an open position and aclosed position. When the door assembly is in the open position, aconsumer has access to a limited number of product while a blockermechanism restricts access to remaining product housed in the device.The devices also include a pushing assembly that provides controlledadvancement of the product housed in the device. As a first product isremoved from the device, the products located behind the one that wasremoved must move forward. In some embodiments, the pushing assemblyincludes a resistance mechanism that is coupled to the track and thepusher and that controls forward movement of the pusher along the trackand thereby controls the speed at which product is advanced for accessby the consumer. The pushing assembly also includes a stop mechanismthat is engaged when the door assembly is in the open position. Whenengaged, the stop mechanism prevents the pushing assembly from advancingproduct forward.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of three assembled controlled accessdevices positioned between shelving units according to one embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of one of the controlled accessdevices of FIG. 1, shown with the door assembly in the closed position.

FIG. 3 is a partial perspective view of the door assembly and thepushing assembly of one of the controlled access devices of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of one of the controlled access devices ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is perspective view of one of the controlled access devices ofFIG. 1, with the pushing assembly shown in ghosted lines.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of one of the controlled access devices ofFIG. 1, shown in the open position and shown with product.

FIG. 7 is a rear view of one of the controlled access devices of FIG. 1,shown with product.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the door assembly of FIG. 3, shown inthe open position.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the hood of one of the controlled accessdevices of FIG. 1.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the base of one of the controlledaccess devices of FIG. 1.

FIG. 11 is a front perspective view of the pushing assembly of one ofthe controlled access devices of FIG. 1.

FIG. 12 is a side perspective view of the pushing assembly of FIG. 11.

FIG. 13 is a rear perspective view of the pushing assembly of FIG. 11.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the resistance mechanism of the pushingassembly of FIG. 11.

FIG. 15 is a rear perspective view of the pusher of the pushing assemblyof FIG. 11.

FIG. 16 is another rear perspective view of the pusher of FIG. 14.

FIG. 17 is a side plan view of the pusher of FIG. 14.

FIG. 18 is a top perspective view of the track of the pushing assemblyof FIG. 11.

FIG. 19 is a side perspective view of the stop of the pushing assemblyof FIG. 11.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the shaft of the pushing assembly ofFIG. 11.

FIG. 21 is a sectional view of a controlled access device according toanother embodiment, shown positioned between shelving units and shownwith product and the pushing assembly in ghosted lines.

FIG. 22 is an enlarged view of the controlled access device of FIG. 21,taken at inset circle B.

FIG. 23 is a side plan view of the controlled access device of FIG. 21,shown in the closed position.

FIG. 24 is an enlarged view of the controlled access device of FIG. 23,taken at inset circle C.

FIG. 25 is a sectional view of the controlled access device of FIG. 21,shown in the closed position.

FIG. 26 is an enlarged view of the controlled access device of FIG. 25,taken at inset circle D.

FIG. 27 is an enlarged view of the controlled access device of FIG. 25,taken at inset circle E.

FIG. 28 is a side plan view of the controlled access device of FIG. 21,shown in the open position.

FIG. 29 is an enlarged view of the controlled access device of FIG. 28,taken at inset circle F.

FIG. 30 is a sectional view of the controlled access device of FIG. 28.

FIG. 31 is an enlarged view of the controlled access device of FIG. 30,taken at inset circle G.

FIG. 32 is a perspective view of the door assembly of the controlledaccess device of FIG. 21.

FIG. 33 is a perspective view of the divider of the controlled accessdevice of FIG. 21.

FIG. 34 is a perspective view of the first blocker of the controlledaccess device of FIG. 21.

FIG. 35 is a perspective view of the second blocker of the controlledaccess device of FIG. 21.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Certain embodiments comprise a controlled access device that housesproduct and that includes a blocker mechanism that restricts access toproduct housed within the device when a door assembly of the device isin the open position. One embodiment of a controlled access device,device 10, is shown in FIGS. 1-7. In some embodiments, one or morecontrolled access devices 10 fit between two shelving units 18, as shownin FIG. 1. Alternatively, one or more controlled access devices 10 maybe positioned on a single shelving unit, or placed on any surface suchas a countertop.

As described in more detail below, controlled access device 10 comprisesa pushing assembly 100 for controlled advancement of product and a doorassembly 12 having a cover 28 that acts as a blocker mechanism.Controlled access device 10 also includes a hood 14 that cooperates witha base 16 and with door assembly 12. Controlled access device 10 has anopen position and a closed position. Specifically, door assembly 12 isconfigured to revolve about its longitudinal axis L (FIG. 8) between anopen position and a closed position. Whether in the open or closedposition, consumer access to products stored within the device 10 isrestricted by the cover 28.

As shown in FIGS. 3-4, door assembly 12 and pushing assembly 100 areassembled with the base 16, and the hood surrounds the pushing assembly100 and a portion of the door assembly 12 to prevent side and top accessto the interior of the device 10. Specifically, the hood 14 interfitswith the base 16 in any suitable manner, and also attaches to the topportion of the door assembly 12 in any suitable manner. As shown inFIGS. 4-5, base 16 is sized and shaped to receive the pushing assembly100, described in more detail below.

In some embodiments, the top of the hood 14 includes an aperture 18 thataligns with an aperture 20 in the top of the door assembly 12 (FIG. 4),and through which a screw or other suitable fastener (not shown) maypass to secure the hood 14 to the door assembly 12. Similarly, the base16 may include one or more apertures 22 (FIG. 4) that aligns with anaperture 26 (FIG. 8) in the bottom plate 24 of the door assembly 12 andthrough which a screw or other suitable fastener (not shown) may pass tosecure the door assembly 12 to the base 16. Door assembly 12 may becoupled to hood 14 and base 16 in any suitable manner, so long as thebottom plate 24 of the door assembly 12 is free to revolve about itslongitudinal axis L. Door assembly may be spring-loaded. For example, aspring may be located on the underside of bottom plate 24 or in anyother suitable location to urge door assembly from its open position toits closed position. In addition, a damper feature may be included sothat the door assembly does not slam shut.

In some embodiments, the top of the hood 14 and/or the base 16 includesone or more grooves (such as groove 50 shown in FIG. 10). In theseembodiments, the door assembly has one or more projections (such asprojection 48 shown in FIG. 8) configured to be received within the oneor more grooves and traverse along the one or more grooves as the doorassembly 12 revolves between its open position and its closed position.As shown in FIGS. 1, 3, and 6, bottom plate 24 of door assembly 12 alsoincludes an engaging mechanism 44, which can be a notch, aperture,elongated/offset surface, cam, protrusion, or other suitable mechanism,that interacts with pushing assembly 100, as further explained below. Asillustrated, engaging mechanism 44 is an offset surface.

Door assembly 12 has any suitable geometry. As shown, the bottom plate24 of door assembly 12 is sized and shaped to receive a round product,such as a bottle, although bottom plate 24 could have other shapes andsizes depending on the dimensions of the product(s) to be housed in thedevice. As shown in FIG. 8, bottom plate 24 is circular and has adiameter Q that is slightly larger than the diameter of the producthoused in device 10. Diameter Q of the bottom plate 24 is also slightlysmaller than the width X of the hood 14 (FIG. 9) so that the hood 14snugly fits around the door assembly 12.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 8 and as mentioned above, door assembly 12includes a cover 28, which in some embodiments is formed of any suitableplastic or other material, that generally extends between the top of thedoor assembly 12 and the bottom plate 24 of door assembly 12 and thatextends around a portion of the periphery of the bottom plate 24. Sincebottom plate 24 is circular, cover 28 is therefore curved. In this way,cover 28 and door assembly 12 form a semi-cylindrical hollow assembly.In some embodiments, cover 28 is clear or translucent so that a consumercan see product housed within device 10.

In the illustrated embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, cover 28 extends froma first point 30 along the periphery of bottom plate 24 to a secondpoint 32 along the periphery of the bottom plate 24, where the firstpoint 30 is spaced about 180 degrees from the second point 32 (in otherwords, first point 30 and second point 32 are at opposite ends ofdiameter Q of the bottom plate, or on opposite sides of the bottomplate). As explained above, diameter Q of the bottom plate 24 isslightly smaller than the width X of the hood 14. Thus, the cover 28 isdimensioned so that, when the door assembly is the closed position, theleft side 34 of the cover 28 abuts the left side 38 of the hood and theright side 36 of the cover 28 abuts the right side 40 of the hood and sothat the cover 28 blocks access to product housed within device 10,including any product received on the bottom plate 24. Moreover, in theclosed position, the convex side of curved cover 28 is facing theconsumer.

As mentioned above, the door assembly 12 is coupled to the base 16 andthe hood 14 so that it is free to revolve about its longitudinal axis Lfrom the closed position to the open position. As the door assembly 12revolves, the bottom plate 24 revolves, which in turn revolves the cover28. As door assembly 12 moves from its closed position to its openposition, cover 28 revolves so that the left side 34 of the cover 28abuts the right side 40 of the hood and the right side 36 of the cover28 abuts against the left side 38 of the hood 14. In the open position,the concave side of cover 28, which is located behind any product housedon bottom plate 24, is facing the consumer so that a consumer has accessto any product housed on bottom plate 24 (see FIG. 6), but does not haveaccess to product located behind cover 28 within the device 10. Inparticular, although a consumer now has access to the bottom plate 24(and any product received on bottom plate 24), cover 28 still extendsacross the width X of the hood 14 to block access to the interior of thedevice 10 (see FIG. 6, for example). In this way, the cover 28 acts as ablocker that restricts access to any product housed inside the device 10even when the door assembly 12 is in the open position.

Moreover, because cover 28 extends along the periphery of the bottomplate 24 from generally a first end of diameter Q to generally a secondend of diameter Q (diameter Q being only slightly smaller than width Xof the hood 14), cover 28 at least partially blocks access to theinterior of the device regardless of the door assembly's degree ofrevolution. Moreover, because width X of the hood is only slightlylarger than the diameter and/or width of the product housed within thedevice and because cover 28 always extends at least partially across thewidth X of the hood, the cover 28 acts as a blocking mechanismregardless of the orientation of the cover. In other words, even whenthe cover is rotated to a point between the door assembly's open andclosed position, product is not able to fit beyond the cover 28 forremoval out of device 10.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, cover 28 includes a lip46 that a user can grasp to facilitate the opening and closing of doorassembly 12. In the embodiment illustrated, lip 46 extends from the topof the door assembly 12 to the bottom plate 24 of the door assembly 12.In other embodiments, lip could be positioned elsewhere along the coverand/or may extend only partially along the height of the cover.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, product, such as a bottle or other product,is received on bottom plate 24 of the door assembly 12 so that aconsumer may access the product when the door assembly is in the openposition. As a first product is removed from device, pushing assembly100, in certain circumstances, causes products located behind the onethat was removed to move forward toward the bottom plate 24 of thecover.

As shown in FIGS. 11-12, in some embodiments, pushing assembly 100comprises a pusher 114, a track 116, a resistance mechanism 130, a stop118, and an optional shaft 120 (FIG. 20). Pusher 114 includes a pushingram 138 that engages product and pushes product forward. Pushing ram 138includes a front surface 140 for engaging product and a rear surface142. The pushing ram 138 is illustrated as a rectangular plate, althoughother suitable shapes and geometries may also be used.

As shown in FIG. 16, extensions 148 of pusher 114 extend beyond thebottom portion of pushing ram 138 to engage track 116 so that pusher 114is in sliding engagement with track 116. In certain embodiments, pushingassembly 100 also includes a shaft 120 (further discussed below) thatextends through an aperture 103 in the pusher 114.

As shown in FIG. 18, track 116 includes a shaft channel 133, as well asa resistance channel 134 having gear teeth 128 that project intoresistance channel 134 and engage external gear component 144 of theresistance mechanism 130, further described below. The gear teeth 128may be positioned in various other manners along the resistance channel134 and maintain the functionality of the device.

As shown in FIGS. 11 and 19, in some embodiments, resistance channel 134receives stop 118. As shown in more detail in FIG. 19, stop 118 includesa plurality of engagement surfaces 156, which form generally a sawtoothshape in cross section. Stop 118 also includes a front face 158, whichmay extend beyond the resistance channel 134. Front face 158 may haveany suitable configuration: one such configuration is shown in FIG. 4and another suitable configuration is shown in FIG. 11. Engagementsurfaces 156 are positioned to engage projection 162 extending frombrake 146 of pusher 114 (described below and shown in FIGS. 15-17). Stop118 also includes one or more protrusions 160, which may be located onthe side of stop 118, as shown in FIG. 19. As described below, theseprotrusions are shaped and sized to fit within one or more slots 132 inthe side of track 116 (shown in FIGS. 12-13).

As shown in FIG. 15, one end of spring 150 is attached to the pusher 114in any suitable manner, such as, but not limited to, by a screw.Movement of pusher 114 towards the back end of the track 116 unwindsspring 150 so that when released, spring 150 urges pusher 114 in theforward direction. Spring 150 may be positioned anywhere along track inrelation to pusher 114, so that spring 150 is capable of either“pushing” or “pulling” pusher 114 forward. The spring preferably may bea constant force spring, such as those sold under the trademarkConforce®, but many other types of springs, such as a variable forcespring, may also be used.

In embodiments including a resistance mechanism 130, resistancemechanism 130 is attached to pusher 114. As shown in FIG. 14, resistancemechanism 130 includes external gear component 144. As shown in FIG. 15,resistance mechanism 130 is positioned on pusher 114 so that externalgear component 144 extends into resistance channel 134 of track 116 andengages gear teeth 128. According to certain embodiments, one suchresistance mechanism is a conventional resistance motor, such as used intoys, such as the resistance motor Model #w217 sold by Vigor, althoughother types of motors may also be used. In other embodiments, resistancemechanism 130 is a rotary damper.

As one product is selected from the front of pushing assembly 100, thewinding of the spring 150 causes the pushing ram 138 to move forward andthe external gear component 144 to rotate along gear teeth 128 of track116. The movement of pushing ram 138 advances remaining product alongtrack 116 and toward bottom plate 24. The speed of this forward movementis controlled and reduced by resistance mechanism 130. The internalgears of the resistance mechanism 130 are configured to provideresistance to the forward movement by limiting the rotation of theexternal gear component 144. Because the external gear component 144engages gear teeth 128 of track 116 and the external gear rotation islimited, the movement of pushing ram 138 and therefore the remainingproduct to the front of track 116 is slowed.

Product can be loaded in pushing assembly 100 by forcing pushing ram 138backwards along track 116 and placing multiple units of the productagainst the pushing ram 138. As described above, spring 150 pulls thepushing ram 138 to exert force on the products towards the front of thetrack 116. Resistance mechanism 130 preferably allows pushing ram 138 tobe forced backwards freely for loading of the product.

In the embodiments having a shaft 120, shaft 120 is configured to rotateas the pusher 114 moves. Shaft 120 may be positioned to engage aposition sensor, such as a potentiometer or other suitable device, asshaft 201 rotates, as described in U.S. Ser. No. 12/567,370 filed onSep. 25, 2009, the contents of which are incorporated herein byreference. Shaft 120 may be helix shaped (or have other suitable shapes)and is positioned in relation to track 116 so that the shaft 120 is freeto rotate without obstruction. As shown in FIG. 16, pusher 114 includesan aperture 103 cut in a shape corresponding to the shape of shaft 120(i.e., helix geometry plus a small amount of tolerance if the shaft 120is helix shaped) so that when the pusher 114 moves in a forward orbackward direction, the linear motion of pusher 114 is converted into arotary motion of the shaft 120.

Pushing assembly 100 includes a stop 118 that prevents the pusher 114from advancing product forward when the stop is in an engaged position.When stop 118 is in the engaged position, the engagement surfaces 156 ofthe stop 118 engage the projections 162 of the brake 146 that extendinto resistance channel 134. When projections 162 of the brake 146engage the engagement surfaces 156 of the stop 118, stop 118 preventsforward movement of the pusher 114 and thus prevents the pusher fromadvancing product forward.

In some embodiments, when stop 118 is engaged, the pusher 114 can movein increments of a predetermined amount, such increments correspondingto the depth of the product. As explained above, the stop 118 includesengagement surfaces 156 that form generally a sawtooth shape in crosssection. Stop 156 is positioned within resistance channel 134 so thatprotrusions 160 of stop 118 are received in ramped slots 132 on the sideof the track 116 (shown in FIGS. 12-13). When sufficient force isapplied to the front face 158 of stop 118, stop 118 moves from itsengaged position to its disengaged position as the protrusions 160 onthe side of the stop 118 move from one end of slots 132 to the other endof slots 132. Because slots 132 are sloped at an angle along track 116,the application of force to the front face 158 of stop 118 movesprotrusions 160 downward in slots 132. In this way, when horizontalforce is applied to the front face 158 of stop 118, stop 118 moves bothhorizontally toward the rear of the track 116 and downward at the sametime so that stop 118 moves to its disengaged position. An additionalspring 164 (shown in FIGS. 23-26, for example) may be used to slow thespeed at which stop 118 returns to its disengaged position; this speedcan be adjusted to correspond to the amount of time needed for thepusher 114 to move a predetermined increment, such incrementcorresponding, for example, to the depth of one product. Additionalspring 164 may also be used to help pull the stop 118 from itsdisengaged to its engaged position.

Pushing assembly 100 is assembled with respect to door assembly 12,which, as explained above, has a cover 28 that blocks access to theproduct housed on the bottom plate 24 when the door assembly 12 is inthe closed position, and that blocks access to product stored on track116 within device 10 when door assembly 12 is in both the closed andopen position. As shown in FIGS. 2-3, engaging mechanism 44 of the doorassembly 12 is configured to cooperate with stop 118 when the doorassembly 12 is in the closed position. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2,engaging surface 44 applies force to front face 158 of stop 118 when thedoor assembly 12 is in the closed position so that stop 118 is in itsdisengaged position and permits forward movement of the pusher 114. Asdoor assembly 12 revolves into its open position (which allows aconsumer to access product located on the bottom plate 24, but blocksaccess to product housed on pusher track 116), engaging mechanism 44 ofthe bottom plate 24 no longer engages the front face 158 of the stop 118and stop 118 moves from its disengaged position to its engaged positionand thus prevents forward movement of the pusher 114. In particular,when door assembly 12 is in the open position, edge 52 of bottom plate24 (see FIG. 3) is positioned with respect to front face 158 and doesnot apply force to front face 158.

In an alternate embodiment, when sufficient force is applied to thefront face 158 of the stop 118, the protrusions 160 on the side of thestop 118 move upward from one end of slots 132 to the other end of slots132 to move the stop 118 from its disengaged position to its engagedposition. Because slots 132 are sloped at an angle along track 116,movement of the protrusions 160 upward along the length of the slots 132raises the stop 118 vertically from the disengaged position to itsengaged position. In this way, when horizontal force is applied to thefront face 158 of stop 118, such as by opening door assembly 12, stop118 moves both horizontally toward the rear of the track 116 and upwardat the same time. When stop 118 is raised to the engaged position, theengagement surfaces 156 of the stop 118 raise to engage the projections162 of the brake 146 that extend into resistance channel 134. Whenprojections 162 of the brake 146 are engaged with the engagementsurfaces 156 of the stop 154, forward movement of the pusher 114 isrestricted.

Another embodiment of controlled access device, controlled access device300, is shown in FIGS. 21-35. As shown in FIG. 21, controlled accessdevice 300 may be positioned between shelving units 318. In otherembodiments, controlled access device 300 may be positioned on a singleshelving unit 318 or another type of free standing shelf such as acountertop.

Device 300 includes a door assembly 312 having an open position and aclosed position, and at least one blocker that prevents access toremaining product housed within the device 300 when the door assembly isin the open position. A pushing assembly, such as pushing assembly 100described above, is assembled with respect to door assembly 312, shownin FIG. 32.

In certain embodiments, door assembly 312 is a tip bin style door thatpivots between an open and closed position around pivot 324. When doorassembly 312 is closed, access to product located behind the doorassembly is blocked to a consumer (FIGS. 23-27). As door assembly 312pivots to its open position (FIGS. 28-31), a consumer has access toproduct housed within door assembly 312. As door assembly 312 pivots toits open position, protrusion 326 (FIG. 28) and protrusion 340 (FIG. 35)traverse generally upward along slot 328 in divider 320. Dividers 20(FIG. 13) may be included on one or both sides of the devices toseparate adjacent devices 300. Moreover, projection 330 of first blocker314 (FIG. 34) traverses generally laterally and downwardly along slot334 of divider 320 as door assembly 312 pivots to its open position(FIG. 28). At the same time, projection 332 of second blocker 316 (FIG.35) traverses generally laterally along slot 336 of divider as doorassembly 312 pivots to its open position (FIG. 28). After such movement,first and second blockers 314, 316 block access to the interior ofdevice 300 when door assembly 312 is in the open position (FIG. 30).When door assembly 312 is released, spring 338 urges door assembly 312back to its closed position. Door assembly 312 may also include a damperthat prevents door assembly 312 from slamming shut.

As mentioned above, the door assembly 312 includes a projection 326(shown in FIGS. 24 and 26). Projection 326 cooperates with stop 118(described in detail above) so that when the door assembly 312 isclosed, the projection 326 applies sufficient force to the front face158 of the stop 118 to lower the stop 118 into its disengaged positionto allow forward movement of the pusher 114 (described in paragraph 0041above). When the door assembly 312 moves to its open position, as shownin FIG. 29, the projection 326 traverses generally upward along slot 328so that the force is no longer applied to the front face 158 of the stop118 and the stop 118 raises to its engaged position to prevent forwardmovement of the pusher 114 (as described in detail above). As the doorassembly 312 is opened, spring 164 (FIG. 29) helps pull the stop 118 toits engaged position.

While the invention has been described in detail with particularreference to the disclosed embodiments, it will be understood thatvariations and modifications can be affected within the spirit and scopeof the invention as described herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A controlled access device, comprising: a basefor supporting a plurality of products; a hood surrounding the base forrestricting access to the plurality of products, the hood including adoor opening; a door assembly positioned at the door opening, the doorassembly having a dispensing region for accepting one of the pluralityof products, wherein the door assembly is pivotable about an axisbetween an open position and a closed position, wherein the dispensingregion is externally accessible when the door assembly is in the openposition, and wherein access to the dispensing region is blocked whenthe door assembly is in the closed position; and a cover of the doorassembly positioned adjacent the dispensing region, wherein the coverrestricts access to a remainder of the plurality of products when thedoor assembly is in the open position.
 2. The device of claim 1, whereinthe cover is positioned to restrict access to the plurality of productswhen the door assembly is in the closed position.
 3. The device of claim2, wherein the cover is positioned to restrict access to the pluralityof products when the door assembly is in a position between the openposition and the closed position.
 4. The device of claim 1, wherein thebase includes a feature for biasing the remainder of the plurality ofproducts towards the dispensing region.
 5. The device of claim 1,wherein the door assembly includes a bottom plate for accepting the oneof the plurality of products, wherein the cover extends approximatelyhalfway around a circumference of the bottom plate and extends generallyfrom the bottom plate to a top of the door assembly.
 6. The device ofclaim 1, wherein the cover is positioned to block access to thedispensing region when the door assembly is in the closed position. 7.The device of claim 1, wherein the door assembly is biased towards theclosed position.
 8. The device of claim 1, wherein the door assemblyincludes a handle for pivoting the door assembly.
 9. A controlled accessdevice, comprising: a base for supporting a plurality of products; ahood coupled to the base for restricting access to the plurality ofproducts, wherein the hood includes a door opening; a door assemblypositioned at the door opening, the door assembly comprising a bottomplate for accepting a first of the plurality of products and a coverrestricting access to an interior region defined between the base, thehood, and the cover, wherein the door assembly is pivotable about anaxis between an open position and a closed position, wherein the firstof the plurality of products is accessible when the door assembly is inthe open position, and wherein the cover blocks access to the first ofthe plurality of products when the door assembly is in the closedposition.
 10. The device of claim 9, wherein the cover blocks access tothe interior region when the door assembly is in the open position, inthe closed position, and in a position between the open and closedpositions.
 11. The device of claim 9, wherein the base includes afeature for biasing the remainder of the plurality of products towardsthe dispensing region.
 12. The device of claim 9, wherein the coverextends approximately halfway around a circumference of the bottom plateand extends generally from the bottom plate to a top of the doorassembly.
 13. The device of claim 9, wherein the door assembly is biasedtowards the closed position.
 14. The device of claim 9, wherein the doorassembly includes a handle for pivoting the door assembly.
 15. Acontrolled access product dispenser, comprising an interior region forstoring a plurality of products, the interior region defined between acover of a door assembly and a hood, wherein the door assembly ispivotable about an axis between an open position and a closed position,and wherein the interior region is blocked from access; and a dispensingregion of the door assembly adjacent the cover, wherein the dispensingregion is located within the interior region when the door assembly isin the closed position, and wherein the dispensing region locatedoutside of the interior region when the door assembly is in the openposition.
 16. The dispenser of claim 15, wherein the interior region isfurther defined by a base for supporting the plurality of products. 17.The dispenser of claim 16, wherein the base includes a feature forbiasing the plurality of products towards the dispensing region.
 18. Thedispenser of claim 15, wherein the dispensing region is defined in partby a bottom plate, wherein the cover extends approximately halfwayaround a circumference of the bottom plate and extends generally fromthe bottom plate to a top of the door assembly.
 19. The dispenser ofclaim 15, wherein the dispensing region is located opposite the coverfrom the interior region when the door assembly is in the open position.20. The dispenser of claim 15, wherein the cover is positioned to blockaccess to the interior region when the door assembly is in a positionbetween the open position and the closed position.